During this past summer we had a Whitaker Family reunion which started with pictures in Provo after which we all headed down to Moab. I split the summer postings into two postings so that the Whitaker's who have already seen these pictures 100 times, can skip to the next posting for the other part of our summer.

This is a picture of the whole Whitaker Family.

This is in the Fiery Furnace in Moab. Becca leading the way. (Edit by Becca: No, Shawn, that tiny person in the front is SAM, not me :) )

Sarah just loves wearing jewelry-- especially when it glows.

This is in the window arches. That is my sister-in-law behind me. I think she is trying to fly.

While we were in Moab, we went river rafting which was a lot of fun.
Ethan just enjoying the ride.

Sarah has no idea what lies ahead.

Brenden and I were on one of the duckies the whole time.

Would you believe, Sarah actually fell asleep during part of the rafting ride!

Ethan enjoyed wearing his had backwards. That is his cousin Abbey on the left and his Aunt Marie on the right.

The kids and I enjoying the view.

Got to eat between hikes!

I think Ethan's favorite part of the Arches was the sand.

This is part of the guided tour of the fiery furnace. Sorry, the pictures aren't exactly in order.

Sarah & Ethan cooling themselves off. That is Abbey on the left.

Ethan did a good job hiking, although he spent half the time on my shoulders.

Rick, Justin, Brendon, and I went climbing after everybody else went back to the lodge.

There we are pointing to the peak where the above picture was taken.

Ethan was proud of the smiley face that his uncle Mike drew on his tummy.

Sam and Sarah were best buds.

The kids loved the sand dune arches.

So we played the Iron chef game. We split into four teams. Each team had a short time to create three dishes with any food in the lodge, but all the dishes had to feature the secret ingredient-- Jelly Bellies! Becca and Dave were the judges. They did a very good job in judging the food.

Here's Becca and Dave running the game Don't Forget the Lyrics

Sarah just happened to be on the winning team. Here she is enjoying her portion of the prize.

Nothing like nap time!

On the way back from Moab, some of us stopped at Goblin valley to climb around and play hide and seek.

Becca and (Aunt) Sarah (and little Sarah in the background)

We have been slackers this summer when it comes to updating our blog. We were able to take a trip out to Utah in June and July. We had a lot of fun. The picture above is the whole Droge family (my parents and their kids). The only one missing is Adam who is serving a mission in Lubbock, TX.

This is Me, My brother Byron, His wife Elizabeth, and Becca.

This is Becca and I with my Parents.

Becca and I with Greg (my brother) and Wendy (his wife). Becca is holding Greg & Wendy's son Xander (I hope that is spelled correctly). This is the portion of the Droge family that now lives in Atlanta (along with Sarah and Ethan of course).

My sister Annie with her husband Mike, their son Jefferson.

In Provo, Ethan & Sarah enjoyed playing in the pool that their Aunt Marie bought for the kids to play in.

Sarah with her Grandma Whitaker and Cousin Sadie.

After our trip to Utah we went back to Clarksville, TN for a couple of weeks to wait for the Army to do its thing. On July 20th, we finally moved down to Carrollton, GA to get ready for school.
My brother Bruce came and visited us for a few weeks. The picture below is while we were at the Atlanta Aquarium. Both Sarah and Ethan both really enjoyed the fish.

The aquarium has an area where you can pet sting rays. Ethan did put his hand in the water as well, we just didn't get it on camera.

Sarah loved trying to pet the stingrays. She was able to touch them a few times. Bruce is the one in the background with the white shirt on.

On Aug 1, Sarah turned 5. We had a Birthday party with a bunch of friends over. Since we were new, there were more adults than kids, but Sarah had a blast.

Like Mother, like daughter. She loves those beads.

Sarah and Ethan both love using her new easel.

Sarah ready to go out the door on her first day of school. She is now in Kindergarten with two teachers and 20 kids in her class. She loves going to school and she loves her teachers.

Here we are waiting for the bus the first day, which never came. We haven't had a problem since that first day of school. She loves riding the bus with all of her new friends.

Ethan and Sarah loved their uncle Bruce. Not sure why we don't have more pictures of him. I think all the pictures of him are on his camera (go figure).

This is Sarah playing on the cow at Stone Mountain.

Here is a fun video of us taking Ethan to bed.

Ethan loves puzzles!

We are really enjoying being here in Carrollton. I am getting my Masters in Psychology at the University of West Georgia and my Masters in Christian Ministries online at Lubbock Christian University. So far, I love all of my classes. Becca and the kids are doing great as well as well while we get settled into a new place. Luckily we have a good group of friends and family in the Atlanta area which has made the transition very nice.